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Especially considering [Versus], although that's a work where you can see the correlation/links between the two series, but as the author, I will state now my position that "There are no clear link between the two series"

Especially considering [Versus], although that's a work where you can see the correlation/links between the two series, but as the author, I will state now my position that "There are no clear link between the two series"

So, I got another person to look it up and what they said was that, in addition to the above quote, it was..

Spoiler for AW & SAO Cross-over chapter: Versus Spoilers:

..implied that the full-dive machine Kirito was testing out reached into alternative universes (as opposed to time-travel).

So having said that, AW and SAO could simply be very similar universes. Of course, the author saying that there's no clear link between the two could mean that he's giving himself space to change his mind later without having to retcon stuff.

So, I got another person to look it up and what they said was that, in addition to the above quote, it was..

Spoiler for AW & SAO Cross-over chapter: Versus Spoilers:

..implied that the full-dive machine Kirito was testing out reached into alternative universes (as opposed to time-travel).

So having said that, AW and SAO could simply be very similar universes. Of course, the author saying that there's no clear link between the two could mean that he's giving himself space to change his mind later without having to retcon stuff.

Here's a comparison/contrast topic. I'm growing more and more amazed at just how ignorant some people have been regarding Accel World since SAO aired in their mad rush to proclaim the later the second coming of Jesus. One would think that SAO being popular would encourage people to actually check out Accel World a little more, but it seems like I kind of expected it's basically had the opposite effect and caused people to proclaim it as more or less obsolete. It really is a shame as it really strikes pretty much the same notes with me that SAO did in it's first episode of "wow this has the potential to be really interesting and go places with it's concept". Guess some people really just can't get past the fact that the main character is short and fat and has a lot of attractive girls surrounding him.

I really do seriously wonder if it was SAO that had the fat character and AW the one with the average build if the situation wouldn't be reversed.

Here's a comparison/contrast topic. I'm growing more and more amazed at just how ignorant some people have been regarding Accel World since SAO aired in their mad rush to proclaim the later the second coming of Jesus. One would think that SAO being popular would encourage people to actually check out Accel World a little more, but it seems like I kind of expected it's basically had the opposite effect and caused people to proclaim it as more or less obsolete. It really is a shame as it really strikes pretty much the same notes with me that SAO did in it's first episode of "wow this has the potential to be really interesting and go places with it's concept". Guess some people really just can't get past the fact that the main character is short and fat and has a lot of attractive girls surrounding him.

I really do seriously wonder if it was SAO that had the fat character and AW the one with the average build if the situation wouldn't be reversed.

That would be the most superficial reason to proclaim SAO as the better of the two. The community's dismissal of Haruyuki because of his design has thus far been exceedingly childish. What I would say is that with its death game and MMO premise, SAO opens itself up to a far more interesting line of storytelling that holds much more potential than Accel World's techy take on the high school battle fantasy genre. I enjoy both series, but there is no doubt that SAO's story has been much more entertaining than Accel World IMO

Yet, I don't think I can deny the possibility that if kirito's and haruyuki's positions were switched, the situation might reverse to some extent.

Kirito is more or less a a guy with a decent relationship with friends/family who doesn't have the low self esteem issues that Haru has.

In fact, I doubt Haru's avatar really is as pudgy as it looks - notice that he's drawn in a rougher style (one that strongly reminds me of colour pencils and older 90s anime) compared to everyone else. It's like Sunako, who always appears to herself as an SD Sadako clone, but is really Tall Dark and Bishoujo. The story is told from Haru's perspective, and Haru's self image is strongly skewed. Yes, he is probably pudgy and yes he probably isn't a bish, but he isn't that ugly.

As for whether Kirito and Asuna are Kuroyukihime's parents, I posted some thoughts on that earlier, but as Aprah reminded me, if she was in the hospital, they would have come to see her.

I see the relationship between SAO and AW as that of The Hunt for Red October and Red Storm Rising. Both are separate verses but strongly influenced each other - Bob Toland, for example, is an expy of Jack Ryan. Or the connection between Dance in the Vampire Bund and Ne-to-ge: Lovers in Cyberspace, both drawn by the same author, who reused the designs of male and female lead in Lovers for the male and female lead in Dance. (Their daughter's design got reused for male lead's yaoi fangirl childhood friend.)

Separate verses, but influenced by each other thanks to the author's mind. And maybe KYH was intended to be a combo Kirito/Asuna shoutout by the Author, who having failed to get SAO published properly, decided to make a quiet shout out to a series he really liked.

__________________

~Speaking my mind, even when it costs me~One must forgive one's enemies, but not before they are hanged.Heinrich Heine.

I think it'd reverse quite a bit; humanity can be shallow like that sometimes. SAO is my favourite out of the two, but I still love AW. I don't think that SAO is better, I simply prefer SAO to AW.

Heh, it's fine. Don't worry about it.

I think part of the problem might be that Kirito and Asuna are true equals- which is quite refreshing since there are so precious few anime couples that are indeed true equals.

On the other hand, Haruyuki is clearly the sub-ordinate one in his relationship with KYH. And even in terms of personality, his maturity seems out of sync with KYH. So, one is left wondering what KYH sees in him, other than quick reflexes? Absolute Loyalty? Perhaps, bit still, that rankles people, especially in a decade with a horde of weak minded male protagonists that gave rise to the derisive moniker Generic Harem Protagonist.

Spoiler for Too... hintish:

It feels though, that Kirito and Asuna's relationship is built on mutual respect and on the footing of completely equal partners. And that's what makes their relationship so interesting - it's so... unusually healthy in LNs and Anime. It's closer to the Clannad spectrum of relationships (functional, Communication's taking place), compared to say the ZnT spectrum of Relationships (dysfunctional). Another way of illustrating what I mean would be to chart Shana and Yuuji's relation in Shakugan no Shana- from Dysfunctional Tsundere-fest to a more functional footing.

Now, both AW and SAO lean towards the functional point of the spectrum. But there's always the sense that Asuna and Kirito are starting much further ahead than Haruyuki and KYH.

Another way to look at it would be to see it through the Pre-confessional Rom Coms (will they or will they not - too many Rom Coms to count), to the Post-confessional Rom Coms (They do, now let's see how their relationship work out - Mysterious Girlfriend X). Both SAO and AW are technically past that point of Confession, but AW leaves it semi-ambiguous (and therefore, we get that much derided Love Triangle and Such, which bears more similarity to Shana SII), while SAO makes it completely definite, pusing Kirito X Asuna to a point only, say Clannad Afterstory, and perhaps a few other older Rom-Coms bother exploring.

Ultimately though, I fear that in the next few episodes, Asuna will be labeled as a typical Tsundere by the hardcore moe haters, as absurd and prejudiced as that charge seems. But that's another conversation. for another thread.

I think part of the problem might be that Kirito and Asuna are true equals- which is quite refreshing since there are so precious few anime couples that are indeed true equals.

On the other hand, Haruyuki is clearly the sub-ordinate one in his relationship with KYH. And even in terms of personality, his maturity seems out of sync with KYH. So, one is left wondering what KYH sees in him, other than quick reflexes? Absolute Loyalty? Perhaps, bit still, that rankles people, especially in a decade with a horde of weak minded male protagonists that gave rise to the derisive moniker Generic Harem Protagonist.

Spoiler for Too... hintish:

It feels though, that Kirito and Asuna's relationship is built on mutual respect and on the footing of completely equal partners. And that's what makes their relationship so interesting - it's so... unusually healthy in LNs and Anime. It's closer to the Clannad spectrum of relationships (functional, Communication's taking place), compared to say the ZnT spectrum of Relationships (dysfunctional). Another way of illustrating what I mean would be to chart Shana and Yuuji's relation in Shakugan no Shana- from Dysfunctional Tsundere-fest to a more functional footing.

Now, both AW and SAO lean towards the functional point of the spectrum. But there's always the sense that Asuna and Kirito are starting much further ahead than Haruyuki and KYH.

Another way to look at it would be to see it through the Pre-confessional Rom Coms (will they or will they not - too many Rom Coms to count), to the Post-confessional Rom Coms (They do, now let's see how their relationship work out - Mysterious Girlfriend X). Both SAO and AW are technically past that point of Confession, but AW leaves it semi-ambiguous (and therefore, we get that much derided Love Triangle and Such, which bears more similarity to Shana SII), while SAO makes it completely definite, pusing Kirito X Asuna to a point only, say Clannad Afterstory, and perhaps a few other older Rom-Coms bother exploring.

Agreed--part of the reason I like SAO more than AW (having read both LNs) is that I like the romance between the protagonists in SAO more than that of the protagonists in AW. Much like you mentioned, Kirito and Asuna treat each other as equals, and this allows love to flourish between the two. As a romance buff, I thoroughly enjoyed the time Kirito and Asuna spent together in volume 1, and was quite devastated when later volumes contained much less romance On the other hand, because Haruyuki always sees himself as a subordinate to KYH, he tempers his feelings and thoughts and the relationship between Haruyuki and KYH just doesn't develop as much compared to Kirito and Asuna's relationship.

I think a good example is the first or second episode of the 2nd arc, when Haruyuki visits KYH in the hospital and she arranges her hair the way that Haruyuki said he liked the most. Haruyuki's lack of skill in talking to someone of the opposite gender certainly contributed to the misunderstanding and KYH's sour mood, it was because of his self-perceived subordinate role that he chose not to further disagree with KYH and clear up the misunderstanding by telling her what he actually thought. If Kirito and Asuna were put into the same situation, Kirito would've been more firm in his assertions--that he didn't only compliment her cause she got mad and that Asuna looks lovely and would look lovely in his eyes with any hairstyle.